


The Personal Recordings of Dr Shell

by SpectralScathath



Series: R.O.S.E-6 [1]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Gen, Original Character- Dr Victoria Shell, Warning: mention of miscarriage, technically there is major character death but does it really count if it doesn't stick
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-20
Updated: 2020-11-20
Packaged: 2021-03-10 06:22:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,117
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27648823
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpectralScathath/pseuds/SpectralScathath
Summary: A marvel like R.O.S.E-6 doesn’t come naturally. It takes time, work, and failed attempts. Dr Shell documented all of the latter.~~~~~~~~~an installment in my R.O.S.E-6 au, where Ruby and Penny are roleswapped. Ruby is the Robot built by Atlas, and Penny is the prodigy Huntress-in-Training from Patch.
Series: R.O.S.E-6 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2021641
Comments: 4
Kudos: 11





	The Personal Recordings of Dr Shell

“This is Dr Victoria Shell, lead scientist on the R.O.S.E project.” Victoria talked into her recorder as she looked over the blueprints laid before her, all the notes given to her at the ready and an ample supply of material she could turn into this proposed android. “I have compiled all of Dr Polendina’s and Dr Watts’s notes on aura and prosthetic construction in order to streamline the process. Summer Rose agreed to donate a sample of her genetic material, which we will be attempting to infuse into this creation in order to access the Silverlight Mrs Rose can produce.” 

She set her recorder to the side, rolling on her gloves. “Let’s begin.”

* * *

No one was expecting immediate results with this. However, Victoria held herself to higher standards then the rest of the scientific cohort she had to put up with. 

“Damn it all,” she scowled, jotting down a note to add exhaust vents for heat, and anything she could think of to aid the robot in successfully hosting an aura. This was the first one that managed to have even a partial transfer of aura, but even then…

“Attempt 16 of bonding aura to R.O.S.E-1 failed entirely.” She found her fire extinguisher, turning it on the lump of burning metal and synthetic skin. “Memo to me, investigate into aura-friendly materials for the next bot.”

* * *

The second time was more promising. This time, the android opened its eyes. 

Once she had determined that sensory processing and motor functions were in place, she allowed General Ironwood and his chosen carer for the bot to enter. “Alright. Preliminary testing seems to be running smoothly. The aura hasn’t been rejected yet, but we’ll be keeping an eye on the subject to make sure. If you want to try conversing, you’re free to. It responds to audiovisual stimuli.” If she didn’t know better she’d say the thing was curious.

Xiao Long strode by, moving to sit down on the chair beside the laboratory table, the android sitting with perfect posture and straight legs, the entire skeleton made of silver and black metal. Glowing pink lines of energy wove throughout the internal circuitry, pulsing gently with each blink of silver eyes. 

Those same eyes focused intently on Xiao Long as he sat down, the robot blinking at him inquisitively, but without any fear. Of course there was no fear. It wasn’t real enough for complex emotions like that.

“Hi,” Xiao Long talked to it, resting his hand on the lab table. “Welcome to the world, Ruby.”

Victoria raised a brow and glanced at General Ironwood. “‘Ruby’?” 

Ironwood smiled, a touch of grief in his eyes. “They would have called their daughter Ruby.” 

“That’s not what I was asking.” Why were they naming it? It was a tool, a weapon- ah. Right. The famed Huntsman tradition of named weaponry. That made sense. “But I understand.” If Xiao Long wanted to name a weapon after a miscarried foetus then he was welcome to. Victoria was going to do her job. 

The robot surprised her, however, the voicebox crackling to life in its throat. “… uuu-beee?”

Xiao Long’s face lit up. “Yes! That’s right, you’re Ruby.” He grabbed its metal hand, carefully. “I’m your dad. It’s great to meet you.” 

“Voicebox seems to work well,” Victoria noted. “Appears to be able to roughly mimic other sounds.”

“She’s learning,” Ironwood sounded awed. “Dr Shell, this is incredible! She’s incredible.” His grin broadened. “A protector with a soul. Can you imagine it?”

She raised a brow. A soul? Technically, she supposed. “Don’t get too attached, sir. It’s still in the prototype stages.” Still, she allowed herself some satisfaction as her creation tried to mimic Xiao Long’s hand gestures as he held up a hand, placing its other palm against his and badly copying a smile as it managed the simple task.

So it could learn. That would be useful in the future. 

But the future came too quickly. Soon enough, the ambulatory functions and speech patterns began to shut down, the robot’s eyes going vacant more and more often as the pink lines of energy that wove through its circuitry began to flicker and die, like an aura quickly approaching breakage levels. 

One day, after speech had slowed to near-incomprehensible levels, and the robot had been unable to do anything more than blink, the light in those lines was gone. Xiao Long sobbed beside the laboratory table, until Victoria was able to find Ironwood and get him to shoo the other man out.

She truly didn’t get the fuss, it wasn’t like the robot could die. That was something living things did. Besides, this was an opportunity to rebuild, better than before. Now that she knew this was possible, she could improve. 

She flicked on her recorder, speaking into it as she looked upon the empty shell of new potential, Xiao Long’s tears having left small droplets on the lab table. “R.O.S.E-2 showed promise, but the aura was unable to remain stabilised without a living host. However, this shows that we are getting closer to a more suitable recipient vessel.”

* * *

Attempt three was damn near perfect. She’d managed to make synthetic skin to cover the skull, all the way down to the shoulders, after a note had come back from some of the other scientists about how the bare metallic skeleton had looked creepy. 

It seemed to work, apparently. Xiao Long had even taken to dressing it up. 

R.O.S.E-3 lasted a few months, without any of the side effects that had been a hassle with R.O.S.E-2. Xiao Long got to take this one home, and introduce it to his daughter. Ironwood brought it to meet his trio of Ace Operatives, and they all found it impressive. 

It was impressive indeed.

It was also completely incapable of being muted. Victoria was definitely going to install a mute button into any further models. 

“So then dad and Mr Ironwood took me out into the park, can you believe it?” R.O.S.E-3 babbled incessantly as Victoria opened up the plate on the back of its head, checking to make sure everything was in working order. “I got to see snow, it was so amazing and pretty! They said it’s ‘cold’, do you know what ‘cold’ is, Dr Shell?”

“Yes, cold is a lowered temperature, caused by less kinetic energy in molecules which generates a lower amount of thermal energy.” She replied absently, adjusting a few wires to check the motor reflexes. The robot’s hand spasmed in answer. Good. “Cold tends to be subjective to people, and it’s common for endothermic reactions to feel cold as well.” 

“Can I feel what cold is?” The android asked curiously, Victoria slotting the headplate back in and activating her semblance, drawing her fingertip over the boundaries of the seam as Cleave adhered the metal back together, repeating the process with the skin section that she’d cleaved off for access. 

“Why would you want to feel that?” Temperature receptors would be so finicky to put in. “You have pressure sensors,” of the same standard as those in prosthetics. “That’s enough.”

“But- I’d love to know what wA R M H U G S F Eel like!” The robot’s voice wavered for a second, the sound converting into square waves as Victoria plugged a wire into the data port that rested in the android’s nape. This was the most important part of every check-up, as it allowed Victoria to download all of the robot’s memory files and back them up. It meant that every rebuild wouldn’t have to involve the drudgery of relearning basic things like walking and talking each time. 

“I’ll consider it.” She should also consider weaponry for the next update. After all, the Silverlight was still, unfortunately, dormant. Until the damn bot managed to get that working, ordinary weaponry would have to fill in the slot. 

“Really?” R.O.S.E-3 beamed, the alertness in its eyes phasing out for a moment as Victoria checked that the download was finished and unplugged the wire. 

“Yes, yes,” she checked her scroll, checking to make sure that the data was being stored on her personal servers. She’d review them later and transfer them into the memory bank drives. “Now get out, you’re done here.”

“Thank you thank you thank you!” The android hopped off the table and hugged her tight, but not enough to injure her. 

Victoria stayed stiff as a board, clearing her throat. “What are you doing, R.O.S.E-3?”

“Thank you for considering it. I really really want to know what things feel like.” Those big silvery eyes looked up at her, the android smiling with a simple-minded naivete. 

“Stop hugging me,” Victoria ordered. 

“Sorry, mother,” it smiled and let go, and Victoria stared at the robot, aghast. 

“… What did you call me?” How dare it call her that? Someone had messed up programming a mind into this incarnation, clearly, and she was going to fire them. 

“Mother?” The robot tilted its head. “Did I… do something wrong?”

Victoria schooled her expression into something calm and clinical, not wanting to scare the robot and cause a panic. It was still a robot, after all. One being programmed for combat capabilities. She refused to be murdered by her own creation.

“Of course you did, ROSE-3. I’m not your mother, and you shouldn’t see that sort of affection with me.” She affected a concerned expression, knowing that the robot was sensitive to the emotional displays of others. “Is your designated family not showing you the right level of care? I can have you reassigned if you want a proper mother.”

“No- wait!” The robot’s face screwed up in despair. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it! Don’t take me away from the Xiao Longs! Please? I love them.”

She tutted. “Robots don’t love.” 

“But I-” The android floundered, hands curling in fabric of the long sweater they wore, a pastel monstrosity that only Ederne could have given it. “I didn’t mean to do anything wrong…”

“I know you didn’t.’ She kept her voice soft, as though she was actually addressing a person. “I’ll allow you to stay with them, but you need to keep quiet about all of this, alright? You don’t want them to know how bad of a mistake you made.”

The robot looked like it was going to cry, which was impossible. Victoria didn’t install anything that could work as tear ducts. “I’m sorry.”

“I know. Now run along. The general wants to see your progress.” Victoria had some calculations to do on that weaponry.

“I- oh. Okay.” The android hopped from foot to foot, and it still looked too much like a robot from the shoulders down. Victoria would rebuild it better next time. Make it look more humanoid. Add hair, maybe. That would definitely help the illusion of realism. After all, it was meant to be perfectly disguised as one of them. 

“Run along.” She ordered, watching the robot bolt. Hm. Still clumsy. They’d have to better calibrate the next body with better proprioception. And get rid of this… behavioural quirk that had shown itself. 

She waited until the room was clear and fetched her recorder, tucking a strand of black hair back into her bun as she made a note to herself. “R.O.S.E-3 called me ‘mother’ today. Clearly this is a defect in the current programming. I’ll reset it and inform the general that we had another aural shutdown. I refuse to have such a glitch persisting in my work.”

* * *

“Come on, Lieutenant!” The android beamed up at the tall woman, its short black hair falling over its eyes. “I can take it!”

“I don’t know…” First Lieutenant Ederne held her warhammer close, almost protectively. “I mean, Timber’s not exactly light.”

“This is a durability test, Ederne.” Victoria reminded her from the sidelines, Captain Ebi and Second Lieutenant Zeki standing with General Ironwood. “That’s the point.”

“Please, lieutenant?” The android bounced on it’s toes, and Victoria wondered where it learnt to mimic that gesture from. “I know I can do it! Dr Shell made me super tough!”

Victoria smirked in pride. She’d definitely upped the durability of the materials she’d used this time. She was quite happy with this iteration, so far. There hadn’t been another repeat of the ‘mother’ incident, so clearly R.O.S.E-4 had learnt from it’s predecessor’s mistakes, once it woke up.

She didn’t really get why Ironwood ordered her to wipe out the memory files of each failure, but she did it anyway. Besides, it gave her the leeway to go in and alter some of the ‘mother’ incident from the android’s files, just in case anyone else reviewed it. She wasn’t stupid. She knew that Ironwood and Xiao Long and the Ace Operatives were all bizarrely attached to the bot. 

She didn’t understand why, but she knew that they preferred it to be treated as though it was actually a person, so she may as well cover her tracks whenever she put the thing in its place for trying to act too human. 

She left her warnings in the robot’s personal files instead.

“Come on, Elm, she’s totally got this!” Ebi cheered on. 

“I do!” R.O.S.E-4 grinned, giving Ederne double thumbs up. “Nothing else put a dent in me, not any of the bullets or anything!” It gestured at the destroyed training room in answer. They had tossed a lot at it, to test it’s capabilities. It did well. Victoria was quite pleased with how her engineering skills held up.

Ederne still looked uncertain as she hefted her weapon. “Well… okay. If you’re sure?” 

“Do it!” R.O.S.E-4 smiled innocently up at her, Ederne’s face marred with her unease as she swung her warhammer up, over, and down. 

Metal screamed and broke apart, warped by the force of the blow as all of Victoria’s hard work was destroyed in one swing, leaving a mess of scrap heap on the ground. Motor fluid began to leak out of the destroyed wires, coloured pink with metal dust for better mobility. 

Timber clanged on the ground as Ederne dropped it with a gasp, her hands clasping over her mouth as tears sprang to her eyes, rolling down her cheeks as she fell to her knees, reaching for the damaged prototype and cradling it gently in her massive arms. 

“No-!” Ebi was the first one to speak, but Zeki was the first one to move, crossing the room in long strides to place a hand upon Ederne’s shoulder, kneeling beside her as she stared at the broken mess in her hands. 

Victoria realised what had happened to her creation and scowled. “Damn, that’s going to be a bitch to rebuild.” Still, every break meant a new chance to improve, so she couldn’t help but relish each destruction of her prototype, every chance to make something better of the faulty product.

Ederne flinched, her breath hitching as tears began to roll down her cheeks. Ebi huddled next to her, on the other side to Zeki, talking in low tones. “Elm, you need to let go. It’s going to be okay. She’s going to be fine. Just- let go of the body, Elm-” 

Victoria noticed with some disbelief that the second-best operative in Atlas was beginning to _tremble._

Honestly, some people. Ederne should get over herself. 

General Ironwood finally found his voice. “Dr Shell- if you could go to your lab? We’ll bring Ruby in soon.” 

Victoria nodded and walked past her failed creation, already dreaming up new improvements. She walked down the hall, her lab coat swishing around her as she pulled her recorder from her pocket and made another note. “R.O.S.E-4 wasn’t durable enough. Next time I’ll use a tougher alloy for the outer shell.” 

* * *

The next time she got her project brought into her lab for repairs, the bot was in even worse state than when Elm had crushed it.

“What happened here?” She scowled at the ace operative, not recognising the face. Must have been the new recruit. Something Bree. Started with a H. Heidi? Holly? Something like that. 

“Grimm, Doc.” Helen answered, looking very put out. “There were more than our intel said. She got split off from us. We couldn’t get to her in time.”

“I see.” She surveyed the damage. She’d be better off just scrapping it entirely and starting over. R.O.S.E-5 was in literal pieces. “Alright, thank you, Hayley. I’ll get started now.”

“It’s Harriet, actually-” The ace operative rared up like she wanted to fight. 

“Yes, yes, now if you’ll excuse me?” She waved her off. “I have work to do.”

Hattie glared at her for a moment, before she was gone in a blur of gold lightning. 

Victoria locked the door behind her, a very prominent section of her ebony hair streaked white, the stripe running through her bun as well. She adjusted her glasses and fetched her monitor, as usual, locating the android’s core and plugging it in so she could start the memory extraction. “R.O.S.E-5 was recovered from the field. Beginning reconstruction.”

* * *

She thought her work was over. That the project she’d put literal years of her life into was gone forever, when Beacon fell. Her project had been destroyed in full view of everyone, tarnishing her name as a scientist and an engineer. 

She was certain she’d lose her job for it. At the very least, she’d have nothing to do for a while, until she got assigned to a team headed by a different scientist. 

She’d probably resign if that was the case. She refused to follow another’s lead when she’d spent so long blazing her own path. She had built a machine that would save the world, and it got utterly destroyed by a child in a death match. How humiliating. 

She’d _told_ Ironwood that R.O.S.E-6 was designed to kill Grimm. Damn him for insisting. 

It came as a pleasant surprise when she got the message on her scroll, walking into her lab to see her creation laid out on a lab table, ready and waiting for her. 

She smirked, flicking on her recorder. “The Vytal Tournament was a failure. Luckily, we have recovered R.O.S.E-6’s core.” She set the recorder aside and grabbed a blowtorch. “Let’s start over.”

* * *

Silver eyes blinked open, and Victoria stretched, unplugging the wire from the port on the back of the robot’s neck. “Welcome back, R.O.S.E-7. How does it feel to be better than ever?”

**Author's Note:**

> so far the other extra installments and shorter drabbles are on my tumblr: spectralscathath, tagged with 'ROSE 6', if anyone is interested.
> 
> Also, Dr Shell is the female scientist in Pietro's photograph, so she ran in his and Watts's circles of science.


End file.
